Alfredo Piàn
|birthplace = Las Rosas, Sante Fe, Argentina |death date = |placeofdeath = Las Rosas, Sante Fe, Argentina |nationality = ARG |years = 1950 |status = Deceased |currentteam = |currentcar = |firstrace = 1950 Monaco Grand Prix |firstwin = |lastrace = |lastwin = |2015Position = |2015Pts = }} Formula One Career 1950: Scuderia Achille Varzi At the beginning of 1950, Pián left Argentina to compete for the first time in motor racing's premier international category, Formula One. He was set to replace Juan Manuel Fangio at the Scuderia Achille Varzi team for the 1950 season. Scuderia Achille Varzi was the name of the team that was sponsored by the Automóvil Club Argentino (ACA), the governing body of Argentinian motorsport that was responsible for promoting Argentina's best drivers in the European competition. His decision to move from domestic Argentine racing to international racing was a heavy decision, Pián having to sell his car to fund the journey.https://www.facebook.com/pg/mecanicanacional.pian/posts/ Pián would race in the team alongside fellow Argentinian, the young debutant José Froilán González. The team would use a Maserati 4CLT/48 to compete throughout the season. Their first race came at the San Remo Grand Prix to which Pián qualified in seventh position. However he was notably two seconds slower than teammate González and four seconds off the pole time set by Alberto Ascari's . In the race, he drove consistently and was steadily promoted to fourth as the car's ahead of him retired. He followed González for much of the race until his younger teammate retired. He thereafter was positioned in third and went on to finish the race in this position. It was a strong opening result, however he finished two laps down on Fangio and Villoresi ahead of him. The team's next race would come at the second round of the world championship at the Monaco Grand Prix.http://www.jmfangio.org/gp195002monaco.htm In the first day of practice, Pián appeared extremely competitive and set a time that put him sixth fastest. However on the second day, the track had notably become very slippery due to oil being spilled over the circuit after multiple engine failures. As Pián went up the hill approaching Massenet, he suddenly lost control and crashed. Pián describing the accident as "I touched the brake gently, the car went into a spinning top and fired me."'' ''Pián was flung from his car, however appeared only lightly injured with only cuts and bruises to face and legs. Upon further examinations from a Dr. Orrechia it was noted that he had fractured his right fibula and would be unable to participate in the race. It was reported he was chasing after Alberto Ascari, a driver he fell afoul with in San Remo when he crashed. González had qualified third, whilst Pián unable to participate in the rest of qualifying dropped down to eighteenth fastest in the time sheets. Although he would be unable to participate in the race, his fastest time would have meant he would have started ahead of Johnny Claes, Harry Schell and Peter Whitehead on the grid. It would turn out to be a difficult race for Scuderia Achille Varzi, after the first lap, González was involved in a pile-up which had seen him burned by an exploding fuel tank. By the end of the race, both Pián and González were left badly injured to which their compatriot, Juan Manuel Fangio, having won the race immediately grew concerned for the wellbeing of his fellow countrymen. Rather than celebrate his win, Fangio drove Pián to an orthopedic centre in Belogna before driving González to a specialist burns unit. Pián thereafter returned to Argentina and never raced in Formula One again. Pián thereafter never complained or was bitter about the fact that he had such a short time competing at the top level of motorsport. Although his Formula One career was over, he did continue to use a Formula One Maserati 4CL in the Argentinian Fuerza Libre category throughout the end of 1950 until early 1952.http://www.teamdan.com/archive/gen/temporad.html#7 Formula One Statistical Overview Formula One Record Career Statistics Career Results Notes Category:Drivers Category:Argentinian Drivers Category:1912 births Category:1950 Début Drivers Category:1990 deaths